Contemporary research is increasingly focused on studying buildings that either interact with environmental boundaries or adapt themselves to their users’ needs. In the current literature, this kind of ability is given different names: responsivity, adaptability, smartness. These are different ways to refer to a common concept, with subtle nuances. Foldable surfaces are one of the most interesting geometries able to give responsivity to building components, but often their production is complex and expensive. The aim of this research was the creation of a novel material that can provide lightweight solutions for foldable building envelopes. This composite material can be folded and unfolded easily, like a sheet of paper, but with a higher mechanical performance. It is made with the thermoplastic elastomer SEBS (styrene–ethylene–butylene–styrene) as its matrix, as well as a fabric reinforcement. In this paper, following an introduction to this subject, the authors present the composite material’s production methods and its mechanical characterization.
The development of adaptive architectural envelopes is one of the goals of researchers that aim to improve the energy performance of buildings. Traditional devices often have drawbacks linked to the complexity of the kinetic systems used, as the mechanical systems for guaranteeing proper operation are complex and expensive (e.g., hinges). Adaptive envelopes require energy for driving the mechanical components and management systems. Thus, it is useful for such adaptive elements to be self-sufficient, generating the energy necessary for their functioning. This study presents a prototype of a lightweight and stand-alone component for dynamic envelopes, characterized by a flexible composite material integrated with high-efficiency photovoltaic cells called the Solar Lightweight Intelligent Component for Envelopes (SLICE). The management and control of the SLICE is based on the Arduino platform. This paper describes the multidisciplinary design process that led to the realization of the current prototypes, the laboratory test phases, as well as the results of the preliminary experiments carried out under real environmental conditions.
The present research aims at revitalising the archaeological park of Megara Hyblaea through innovative strategies developed within the PON project “An early warning system for cultural heritage/e-WAS”. In this project Sicilian research institutions, universities and companies pursue the common goal of developing new technologies for the protection, enhancement and strategic management of the historical and cultural heritage. The ancient Greek colony of Megara Hyblaea is immersed in an industrial landscape that stretches along the coast of eastern Sicily from Augusta to Syracuse. The sense of the original place has been obliterated by an indiscriminate occupation of the land by industries which have left, here and there, an archipelago of “patrimonial wrecks”, which are equally close to the smelly chimneys and the horizon of the sea. This landscape of contrasts, dominated by petrochemical industries, has over time hindered a cultural tourism appropriate to the representativeness and importance of the asset, despite the efforts made by the authorities responsible for its protection. The paper demonstrates the need for a holistic approach to the revitalisation project of the archaeological site: the strategic design, understood as the story of the overlapping of “invisible cities”, aims to reorganise and re-conquer places through a new narrative coherent with hidden values, going as far as the experimentation of innovative technologies for the creation of facilities for the enjoyment of the park.
In the recent decades, the flexibility of the modern human requirements and the growing need for economic sustainability have increased the interest in architecture with changeable configuration. In this sense, there are many examples defined as interactive or responsive architectures, in which the configuration can adapt to users' requirement or climate changes. In particular, a series of activities, from humanitarian or environmental emergencies to social and cultural events, require lightweight, easily transportable and transformable objects. An answer to these requirements can be provided by the use of a type of mechanism that is defined as "folding". The University of Catania has formed a multidisciplinary research group addressed to develop a project called KREO (Kinetic Responsive Envelope by Origami). The goal is to realize a pre-folded reusable envelope, in composite material. In the present article the first results are shown, related to the analysis of the state of the art, the base material and the possible applications.
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